Book of the Month: January

I read 9 books in January. It was a great month for reading. The book that I enjoyed the most was Sabina by C. DeMelo. It is a historical fiction novel that takes place in 15th century Florence. I was captivated by Sabina's life story but more than that I loved the author's luscious setting descriptions. They made the book come alive. From the clothes that the ladies wore to the architecture and the bucolic surroundings, the setting was a big part of the story. The characters were amazing as well, particularly the men that Sabina loved. I loved them too. Sabina is a must read for historical fiction fans.

Sabina

Sabina is a historical fiction novel set in Florence beginning in 1477 when Sabina Rossi is twenty-years-old. The Rossi family is a noble Tuscan family who have become penniless. When her father arranges a marriage for her with an older but wealthy man, Tommaso Caravelli, he is trading her gorgeous looks for a dowry. However, Sabina is in love with Marco Alfani, a poor boy her age whom she has been sleeping with. Marco's request for her hand in marriage is denied by her father as Sabina has already agreed to marry Tommaso. After her marriage Sabina tries to live a respectable life. Her brashness could get her into trouble but her good looks seem to smooth things over with Florence's elite Medici family, especially Lorenzo de Medici. After her new husband suddenly dies, Sabina finds herself extremely wealthy with plenty of options on how to live her life. The question is will her headstrong nature take over or will she adapt to living in a man's world? This story is a three generation saga that ends with Sabina's death at age 80 and includes her daughter and granddaughter.

I LOVED this novel! The setting descriptions were delicious, from the bucolic surroundings to the grand architecture and exquisite fabrics that adorn the walls of homes and churches. The reader feels like they have been transported to Renaissance Italy.  The characters were extraordinary.  Sabina is a great heroine. She begins life as a spoiled girl but grows up learning how to live as she wishes under the restraints of fifteenth century Florence. Her sister Cecelia is her opposite. Cecelia becomes a nun after her husband and son pass away. She is subserviant whereas Sabina is willful. These two sisters still manage to get along despite their different lifestyles. You know that one will always back up the other. Marco is interesting. He enters the story as a lustful boy but later enters the priesthood and becomes lustful for power. His desire for sex has never waned though. The men whom Sabina has relationships with are dreamy. I am personally not opposed to meeting Tommaso Caravelli, Lorenzo de Medici, or Sabina's other men. She chooses them well. All have plenty of money to lavish upon her, are good in the bedroom and do not care that she is an independent woman with a sassy tongue.

Historical fiction and romance fans simply must read Sabina! Passion drips off its pages; passion for sex, romance, art, political power, religious power, and personal possessions. 5 out of 5 stars!

The King's Justice

This is the first installment  of the Stanton and Barling Mystery series by E. M. Powell. It takes place in 1176 England with Aelred Barling, court clerk to Henry II's justices, and Hugo Stanton, Barling's messenger. They are sent from the traveling royal courts to investigate a murder in Claresham after Sir Reginald Edgar arrives at the court in York to request permission to hang a suspected murderer. Edgar is a little drunk and a lot obnoxious and since he has no witnesses his request is denied. Barling and Stanton are ordered to investigate the matter and administer the king's justice, if necessary.  The case initially appears to be an open and shut case with a suspect already locked up in jail. Additional bodies begin to be found but with the suspect escaping from jail, the villagers in Claresham are demanding that he be caught and hung immediately.

The king's justice is the name of a test that determines if a person is innocent or guilty. The test is performed by tying the suspect's hands to their ankles and submerging them in water.  If the suspect drowns, he is innocent.  If the suspect floats, he is guilty and is hung later in the day.  I wondered while I was reading this whether the person controlling the rope that submerges the suspects was able to decide who was guilty. It seemed to me that this person held onto the rope at all times and could submerge you in a way that you floated as a guilty person.

I enjoyed the book but with 6 or 7 murders to investigate it was a bit exhausting. There were several intriguing suspects and many twists and turns, perhaps too many twists and turns if that is even possible. The back and forth between new victims, new suspects and new twists should have been suspenseful but it just seemed to be too much for one book.  With each new victim there was a new suspect. Also, it was surprising that Stanton was a more cerebral sleuth than Barling. I expected the opposite. It will be interesting to see how their work relationship grows in subsequent novels.

4 out of 5 stars.

Let Slip The Dogs

In book 5 of the Francis Bacon Mysteries the story takes place at Richmond Palace in 1591. Courtiers and titled ladies are in each other's arms while Tom Claraday and Trumpet conclude their plans to fool Trumpet's soon-to-be husband on the wedding night.  They will get him drunk and substitute a lookalike in the bed chamber while Trumpet meets Tom in his room. Even the main character Francis Bacon will get involved in a private liaison. However, when a young man who is known to collect gossip is found dead in the Queen's orchard there is only the question of whether he was murdered to keep a romantic secret or a political one. Bacon does not want to get involved. He is particularly bothered in this installment of the series by not having a position or patron and has considered being bought by a foreign entity for money.

I enjoyed this book but would have to say that it is my least favorite so far in this series.  This just goes to show how well the earlier books were written.  The actual murder did not occur at least until a third into the book with sex taking prominence in the plot. It seemed out of character for Francis Bacon to get involved in a sexual liaison and to be so depressed about his finances that he considered committing a treasonous act just for money. Everyone gets down in the dumps and does stupid things but not in a mystery series. Also, the investigation of the murder did not involve Bacon because he was busy with his pity party. It was done by Tom and Trumpet talking between themselves. They didn't interview witnesses, etc... The main character/sleuth should be the one doing the sleuthing and this was a mistake on the author's part.

Let Slip the Dogs was a departure from the mystery formula that the author has followed in the series. Let's see what she does with the final book in the series.

The Library of Legends

I have been patiently waiting for Janie Chang to publish her next book since I finished reading Dragon Springs Road last year. Last week I received an advanced review copy of The Library of Legends from William Morrow through the Early Reviewer's Program at Librarything. The book will be published on May 12, 2020. The story takes place in China in 1937.

When Japanese bombs begin falling on the City of Nanking, nineteen-year-old Hu Lian and her classmates at Minghua University are ordered to flee. Lian and a convoy of students, professors, and staff must walk a thousand miles to the safety of China's western provinces, their journey under constant threat of aerial attack from the Japanese. More than refugee lives are at risk. The students are carrying a priceless treasure, a five hundred year old collection of myths and folklore called the Library of Legends. Their duty to safeguard the Library forms unexpected bonds between them. Lian finds friendship and romance with the wealthy and handsome Liu Shaoming. After one classmate is murdered and another is arrested, Lian realizes that she must escape before a family secret is revealed, putting herself in danger of being arrested also.

I enjoyed this book but at the midway point I got bored with the students constantly marching through China. Not much happened with the characters at this point in the story to carry the plot forward while the students walked for hours and then rested. There were approximately 60-75 pages that were sluggish. The story soon picked up when a professor and then a communist student were murdered. In addition, there is an element of fantasy in the plot. The Library of Legends has a folklore story about celestial beings, gods and guardian spirits living on earth to help humans. There are several of these guardian spirits woven into the plot. I wouldn't normally like the fusion of the historical fiction and fantasy genres but it fits the setting of this book. It takes place in China which,  even today, has a focus on ancestor worship.

The author chose a great historical subject to write about. In 1937 China, when the Second Sino Japanese War broke out, the universities were evacuated. The students, called liuwang, school administrators and professors all walked through China to safer areas where they could continue their school activities. They carried luggage, lab equipment, library books and kitchen ware. They stopped often at Buddhist and Daoist temples where they could rest for a few days before resuming their walking. The author chose this subject because her father was a liuwang from Nanking University.

4 out of 5 stars.

Introduction to the Greek New Testament

Dirk Jongkind of Tyndale House at Cambridge wrote this small, 124 page book, chronicling how the editors at Tyndale House produced a new version of the Greek New Testament. You do not need to know how to read Greek to read this book. The book is just an explanation of how the new edition was put together. The author introduces the reader to manuscripts, textual criticism theory, and textual variation all in a very readable work.

The author provides background information on how and why decisions were made to use certain words over others.  In addition, the editors rejected the use of the Textus Receptus and the Byzantine Text, also known as the Majority Text, as their source text because those texts were from later time periods. I was quite surprised by this as I thought that most Bible translations used one or the other as their source text. Tyndale House used a Greek New Testament text from Samuel Prideaux Tregelles. Tregelles lived in the 1800s and produced his own Greek New Testament that was based on ancient manuscripts. The author also discussed the differences between a translation, an edition and an original. A section on how to spot an error in a manuscript was interesting as well as another section discussing decisions on what to print.

I do not read Greek. What will I remember most from this book? Probably that the early church scribes used what is now called nomina sacra to abbreviate the words for God, Jesus, Christ and Lord. The scribes would only write the first and last letters of those words and write a line over the top of them to connect the letters. Some of the early manuscripts that were analyzed to produce this new edition of the Greek New Testament had nomina sacra writings on them. These contracted words are still seen in Greek icons today.

This was a great book introducing a new edition of a Bible. I wish all translation committees would publish a book like this one so readers would know how decisions were made on what to include and what to exclude.

5 out of 5 stars.

British Ice

British Ice is a fictionalized account of a commissioner's year on Reliance Island off the northern coast of Canada. At the time of Commissioner Harrison Fleet's visit, the island was part of the British Arctic Territory. British Ice is a graphic novel. It was published two weeks ago by Top Shelf Productions.

Since the plot revolves around the setting, it will need some explanation.  The British Arctic Territory is an imagined territory that consists of one main island, Reliance, and a few smaller ones including rocks and underwater formations. It was discovered in the early 1800s by Captain Netherton and the main island was named after his ship. It has remained British land since its discovery and has been constantly manned by a member of the British High Commission even though it is in remote, freezing location. The artwork contributes to the setting. It has been colored entirely in an icy blue tone to match the setting. Drawings in comic strip panels complete the look of this book.

Upon his arrival on Reliance Island, Fleet immediately realizes he cannot speak the native language. He soon meets Ana and Abel, the Community Engagement Officer, both whom treat him with plenty of distrust and sarcasm. After snowmobiling to Netherton's home, a townhome, Fleet settles in for what is supposed to be a four year post. Inside he finds a few items owned by the prior commissioner, who disappeared without a trace. The natives refuse to communicate with him so Fleet must rely upon his pilot, Ana and Abel to determine why the indigenous people have always mistrusted the British.

I did not expect this book to be a mystery but love that it is a historical mystery. Fleet did an investigation into the background of the natives anger toward British rule and was surprised at what he discovered. It wasn't just a reaction to colonial rule. I won't be a spoiler but the answer to that question connects to the first chapter. He also asked plenty of questions about his predecessor. Why did he disappear?  Fleet was able to figure this out after snowmobiling around the island looking for clues.

I was impressed with the author's creation of the setting. He went into great detail in the beginning of the book to tell the reader about the geography of the area, the person who discovered it and British colonialism. Then he began the story.  Incredible!

5 out of 5 stars.

Forbidden

Forbidden is a novel that takes place in twelfth century England. Richard Fitzwilliam, the Earl of Kent, is a jealous man who does not trust his pregnant wife Beatrice. After his brother Edward, prior of Canterbury, falsely claims that Beatrice has not been faithful Richard decides to remove the child she bears from his home. He refuses to pay for the bastard's food and education. Richard takes the newborn away to a monastery, never telling Beatrice where the child is. Before he leaves, Beatrice wraps her own mother's ruby cross necklace around the baby's neck as a remembrance of her.

At St. John's Cluniac Monastery in Lewes a baby is found in a basket by a child, Gweneth. Gwen brings the child to Prior Bartholomew who expects that another unmarried woman has dropped off a baby. Usually the mother returns in a fortnight to reclaim the child but not this time. Gwen wants to name the baby Nicodemus after the Bible character and his formal name becomes Nicodemus St. John. Nick St. John grows up alongside Gwen, her mother Agnes, and Simon who both work at the monastery. His best friend Jeremy's mother works there also. He and Jeremy both have childhood crushes on Gwen that carry on into their teenage years. However, when Jeremy talks Nick into taking monastic vows with him to be Templar Knights, thoughts of Gwen have to be suppressed.

There is nothing like a good family fight. The sibling rivalry between the Fitzwilliam brothers reached epic proportions in Forbidden. Not content to just win the fight, the brothers need to destroy each other. If destroying other family relationships helps bring that to fruition, they do so. The characters in this novel were fabulous. There were several villains, which added to the excitement. Nick's father is identified but how the father accepted the news did not seem realistic. The men who could have been Nick's father were emotional and easily angered but when the actual father realized his paternity, he accepted it point blank. The only part that I did not like was the ending. It was too sad for this love story.

Wrap-Up of the 2019 My Kind of Mystery Reading Challenge

I read 20 books for the My Kind of Mystery Reading Challenge during this past year. There were no required number of books to read, which is what I prefer in a challenge.  No pressure! Below are links to the books that I read for the challenge:

The New Girl
Brewed Awakening
Genesis
Kiss the Girls and Make Them Cry
Angel's Share
Publish and Perish
The Widow's Guild
Bad to the Bone
The Time for Murder is Meow
The Persian Gamble
The President is Missing
Saving Meghan
Pandemic
Broken Bone China
The Bengal Identity
A Plain Vanilla Murder
A Body in Barcelona
The Malta Exchange
Harvest of Secrets
Murder by Misrule

Favorite Book:  Genesis by Robin Cook

Second Favorite Book:  Brewed Awakening by Cleo Coyle

Least Favorite Book:  A Body in Barcelona by Jason Webster

Cloak and Dagger Reading Challenge

The Cloak and Dagger Challenge is a new (to me) mystery book challenge. You can join at several reading levels but I will be selecting the Detective Level and will read between 16 and 25 books. The challenge runs the 2020 calendar year. All mystery genres/subgenres count for the challenge.

This challenge replaces the My Kind of Mystery challenge that I have participated in for several years. This challenge is not returning in 2020. 

The Other Woman

The Other Woman is the latest book in Dan Silva's Gabriel Allon spy series. I have loved this series from its inception but feel that with this installment of the series Silva's writing is slipping.  After reading 200 pages, nothing in the book remotely matched the inside cover blurb. This was almost the halfway point of the novel. Other authors who have written a series for decades have gotten bored with their characters and their writing suffered. With 21 books in the Gabriel Allon series, perhaps this is what happened here.

Here is the plot summary from the inside cover blurb: "In an isolated village in the mountains of Andalusia, a mysterious Frenchwoman begins work on a dangerous memoir.  It is the story of a man she once loved in the Beirut of old, and a child taken from her in treason's name. The woman is the keeper of the Kremlin's most closely guarded secret.  Long ago, the KGB inserted a mole into the heart of the West - a mole who stands on the doorstep of ultimate power.  Only one man can unravel the conspiracy - Gabriel Allon, the legendary art restorer and assassin who serves as the chief of Israel's vaunted secret intelligence service. Gabriel has battled the dark forces of the new Russia before, at great personal cost.  Now he and the Russians will engage in a final epic showdown, with the fate of the postwar global order hanging in the balance.  Gabriel is lured into the hunt for the traitor after his most important asset inside Russian intelligence is brutally assassinated while trying to defect to Vienna..."

At the halfway point in the novel, Allon's Russian asset Konstantin Kirov is murdered in Vienna. However, the reader does not yet know that Kirov is Allon's asset. The woman in the blurb was finally mentioned and her story was interesting. The plot began moving much quicker at the midway point but the resolution of the story did not fit the series. The bad guy didn't just get away after being caught. The bad guy was knowingly given away to the Russians by a western intelligence agency, leaving the world open to more malicious attacks.

The Other Woman was a disappointing read.

Can We Trust the Gospels

Can We Trust the Gospels is a short, 140 page, book outlining the reasons why Matthew, Mark, Luke and John can be trusted to be historically accurate. The author's intended audience are non-Christians. However, the arguments presented in the book are also encouraging for Christian believers.

The author uses the writings of non-Christians such as Tacitus,  with his Annals, and Josephus, with his Antiquities, to corroborate the gospels. He also tests the gospel writers' knowledge of geography, culture, names, and Jewish law. For example, all four gospel writers mentioned obscure, small towns and villages in Israel as well bodies of water.  They had to have been familiar with these places in order to write about them. If the gospels were written hundreds of years later or were forgeries, the writers would not have known the names of some of these places. They were not on any maps. Similar arguments are presented for Jewish culture, law and personal names.

Other details that demonstrate the authenticity of the gospels include what the author calls undesigned coincidences. In an undesigned coincidence, the gospels will give incidental details that someone without eyewitness information could not possibly have known about. For example, Luke and John give two different stories about the sisters Mary and Martha. However, the personalities of the two women are the same in both gospels. One is an activist while the other is contemplative. Thus, both Luke and John are describing real characters. There are a few more examples in the book.  In addition, questions concerning whether we have Jesus' actual words, whether the text of the gospels changed over the years, and contradictions are also discussed.

It is pretty amazing how much data is contained in this small book. The information presented is highly detailed, includes charts and tables, but it still easy to understand and is a quick read. The  topic was well-researched. I am interested in reading a few of the books the author referenced in writing his book. While this book is a good one for skeptics or for those new to the faith, it would be nice to delve more deeply into the subject. So, to answer the question that the title poses...can we trust the gospels? My answer is yes.

13th Annual Graphic Novel/Manga Reading Challenge

I am continuing this challenge in 2020 by signing up to read 12 graphic novels by the end of the calendar year. Since I already have 5 books in my Amazon wishlist waiting for my next payday for purchase, I thought about signing up at the next highest level. However, for me it's always best to lower my reading expectations or I get anxious and stop reading. I am looking forward to getting started on this challenge. It's one of my favorites.